Chapter 45

On the other side of Diancang Pass, unlike the silent city gate, the water level here wasn’t as high, and the current wasn’t as fierce. Many were scrambling amidst the mess, trying to climb higher. They were unaware that Chen Shu had already held back this wave and were still huddled together like startled sparrows, trembling with fear and helping one another.

Several martial world figures emerged from the water near the city gate, calling out to He Yu standing on the city wall, “We can’t do it! We can’t push through! We can’t summon our strength in the water!”

“Why is the city gate closed?” someone shouted.

“Due to the Sword Discussion Tournament, the stream of visitors inevitably included bandits and thieves. In previous years we’ve always had strict entry and lenient exit protocols, and by noon the city gates would be sealed!”

“That’s right,” said He Yu, “but these gates are built too solidly. Even this great deluge cannot batter them open. We are indeed in dire straits…”

“What’s so dire?” Li Chou brushed aside the wet strands of hair plastered to his cheek and retorted, “Just wait for the floodwaters to ram them open, won’t that suffice? Rather than obsessing over opening the gates, we’d be better off lending a hand and rescuing a few more lives.”

“What nonsense!” He Yu snapped, for the first time losing his temper at Li Chou without any pretense of courtesy. “That catastrophic deluge may eventually breach the gates, but by then, the waters will have already submerged the buildings in the city! Who are you rescuing now? To where will you take them? To these low eaves that could flood any moment, or that city wall that might crumble at any time?!”

Evidently, Li Chou hadn’t anticipated such forcefulness from He Yu. He faltered, his expression clearly shaken, yet stubbornly countered, “Just moments ago you praised the sturdy construction of the wall, and now you suggest it might collapse? Isn’t this fearmongering—”

“Do you understand this, or do I?” He Yu shot back.

The members of the Wulin Community immediately fell silent. Li Chou glared at him, wordless. All around them echoed the wailing and despairing cries of the common folk. Someone, unable to bear the awkward tension, cautiously interjected, “Then… according to Brother He’s words… what should we do?”

He Yu turned, fixing his gaze on the speaker. He struggled to restrain his anger before replying in a heavy tone, “If more people crowd onto this city wall, the next wave of floods striking might breach more than just the gates—this entire wall could collapse. And if it gives way suddenly, no one in the city will be prepared. They could be swept away by the currents. With the waters this rapid and fierce, mere swimming skills won’t save them.”

“But the city gates cannot be opened! Do you actually have a solution or not?!”

“A solution… I do have one—” He Yu took a deep breath and declared, “—In my view, since the city gates are submerged underwater and cannot be opened, why not just tear open a section of the city wall above the water first?”

Chen Shu arrived just as he finished speaking. Dismissing his audacious plan, many shook their heads and dove into the water to rescue victims without a second thought. Only Li Chou and a couple of others remained on the shore, locked in a stalemate with He Yu.

“…What confidence do you have in this succeeding?” Li Chou asked.

“None whatsoever. Forget what might happen after the wall is breached; I don’t even know if we can put a sizable hole in it. I don’t have a clue.” He Yu let out a hollow, cheerless laugh. “But I do know this: if we just sit back and do nothing, the entire city will almost certainly be doomed.”

“Alright,” Li Chou said after a long pause. “I’ll trust you this once. Tell me, how do we proceed?”

He Yu pointed towards a section atop the wall showing signs of cracking, its fissures subtly widening under the relentless assault of the floodwaters. Li Chou, upon spotting it, offered no further argument. He merely gave He Yu a curt nod, then turned to rally several disciples from Biyang Valley. Together, they hastened towards the compromised section of the wall.

The floodwaters surged higher against the base of the wall, the crests of the waves becoming increasingly forceful. Despite the skies being clear and boundless, the oppressive atmosphere felt more suffocating than the wettest, gloomiest night of rain. Time and again, people who had been clinging onto roofs, pleading for rescue, slipped into the voracious waters below. The fortunate among them were hauled back by rescuers onto slightly higher roofs. The unlucky ones choked on water as their cries were abruptly silenced; one monstrous wave would pass, and they vanished without a trace.

The intermittent moans and desperate wails surrounding him did nothing to slow Li Chou’s advance. If anything, they spurred him to move even quicker.

In moments, leaving He Yu behind, their small group traversed the long stretch of the city wall to reach the fissured segment. Close up, the cracked section was truly pronounced, jagged lines spidering across a significant portion of the stonework. Whenever a wave slammed against it, water forced its way through the crevice, trickling faintly down the exterior face before merging into the powerful torrent of the Yushui River.

But this scant seepage was insignificant, like a cup of water to put out a cart of firefighting—a mere dribble against the catastrophic deluge.

Li Chou observed it only briefly. Without hesitation, he thrust his sword into the deepest part of the fissure. A pity for that blade! Its edge was already turned from prior exertion, and now he mercilessly jammed it into the unyielding stonework, bending the steel almost to the point of snapping.

The others followed suit, driving their own swords into the crevice, attempting to lever apart the massive stone blocks comprising the wall. Although all possessed deep martial prowess, and their blades bit deep into the rock, the wall showed no sign of yielding. Not even a small chip of stone fell loose. The fissure continued its creeping spread seemingly of its own accord; any marginal widening was clearly not a result of their exertions.

Seeing this futile outcome, Li Chou’s frustration surged anew, made worse by hearing steps rapidly approaching behind him. Irritated, he snarled without turning, “This damn crack won’t budge! What on earth were you thinking!”

“We’ll make it budge. You step aside first,” came Chen Shu’s voice.

Li Chou whirled around. There stood Chen Shu, poised close behind him, clearly planning to approach the wall despite having just traversed the arduous route from the Sword Discussion Platform in the city center to the ferry pier and back again. Astonishingly, she appeared entirely fresh and immaculate—an almost celestial contrast to Li Chou himself, disheveled and sodden, his ceremonial cap gone and his hair and robes plastered wetly to his body.

Indeed, she hadn’t descended from heaven. The footsteps Li Chou had registered moments before were hers as she raced back. His failure to distinguish the light footfall of this diminutive girl from a sturdy man like He Yu was caused by only one thing—

In one hand, she held her sword; in the other, she firmly gripped the gleaming haft of an enormous, terrifyingly sharp Great Axe!

“Where in the world did you get that?!” Li Chou blurted out, eyes wide.

Chen Shu casually pointed behind her towards several knights busy rescuing others downstream. “Took it from Meng Xu.”

“Took it… from Meng Xu?!”

“Fine,” Chen Shu conceded with a shrug. “Seized it. Time is tight, no chance to explain to him properly. Now, you step aside.”

Li Chou’s jaw was still slack, yet Chen Shu’s tone was so unwavering he found himself powerless to gainsay her. His lips moved soundlessly before he finally yielded and pulled his sword back from the crack. Obediently, he shuffled away. The disciples from Biyang Valley, taking his cue, also retreated to one side, clearing an unimpeded view of the damaged wall section for Chen Shu.

Chen Shu then stepped decisively forward. Still wielding the axe in her left hand, she used her right to shove her sword unceremoniously into Li Chou’s arms—still tangled and soaked. Planting her legs spread wide, one pressed firmly against either side of the crack straddling the fault line, she brought the massive, wickedly sharp head of the great axe perfectly to bear upon the deepest visible fissure. Every onlooker held their breath, their gazes fixed intently upon this scene. Then, gathering momentum, she raised it high to the heavens—

With a muffled thud, Chen Shu gave a deft strike, driving the massive axe deep into the city wall!

Instantly, the surroundings fell silent, even the distant cries for help grew faint. Several people stared dumbfounded at the wall cleaved by the axe—though it seemed only a finger’s width apart, showing no other changes. Someone, lifting their head to look at Chen Shu, seemed about to question her, but a sharp shout cut them off.

“Run! That section of the wall is about to collapse!” He Yu bellowed sternly not far away.

Having fallen behind the others, he stood at a distance with a clear view of the wall below the battlement. He alone could see the crack spreading rapidly from Chen Shu’s strike, sprouting roots and shoots like a tree. It surged upward and downward along the tide line, only slowing after reaching the water’s edge. Then, in an instant, that solitary fissure spider-webbed outward, and in the blink of an eye, truly grew into a towering tree—from the battlement down!

Though visibly stable, a side view revealed it: that section of the wall really was going to collapse!

As He Yu’s shout rang out, the others still uncomprehending, Li Chou was the first to grasp the danger. Before the disciples could question it, he barked, “Listen! Run! All of you run!” Thus, whatever doubt they held towards He Yu’s words, the disciples dared not disobey Li Chou. At his command, they turned and fled.

Li Chou himself spun toward the exit, only to twist back halfway, his body wrenching violently as he yelled at Chen Shu, “What are you standing there for?! Got a death wish?!”

“This axe isn’t mine,” Chen Shu replied, rapping the wooden handle seriously. “If it gets lost, it’d be hard to account for it. I’d better wait right here.”

Before her feet, the fissure—perhaps jolted by her careless tap—widened slightly, revealing fragmented stone blocks beyond the crack. They were indeed riddled with splits, poised to crumble under the slightest pressure. Li Chou glared at her. Finally, the veneer cracked—that powdered, preening veneer—and he snarled a profanity:

“Damn it all! Is this really the time for it? Are you a madwoman, actually courting death?!”

Without waiting for her astonished reaction, he flung aside his sword, seized her by the collar, and hauled her back the way they’d come!

By chance—no, luck—that section was doomed. Earlier, the tide Chen Shu had held back at the wharf surged forth. Now, the next raging crest thundered through Diancang Pass, flooding down the streets to smash against the fractured wall with brutal force. They’d scarcely run a few steps before—Crash!—the wall shattered under the impact.

Meng Xu’s axe! Xu Qiong’s sword! And Li Chou’s own cherished weapon, cast aside to grab Chen Shu—all were swallowed by the deluge. Not just the weapons: furniture, food, clothing, and even bodies, tumbled within the surge, surged through this newfound breach into the wilderness beyond. In an eye-blink, every last scrap of debris had been swept from the street, leaving behind nothing but the torrent’s wake.

Upon the wall, Li Chou clung fiercely to the rampart, heart pounding. Only after a long moment did he finally release his grip on Chen Shu’s collar—just as she spoke, her voice tinged with regret:

“Oh dear… such fine swords swept away.”

“Still thinking of swords!? Be grateful we’re alive!” Li Chou retorted coldly.

“We are alive,” Chen Shu blinked, then spun toward He Yu, who was already watching them from the distance. The calm that had endured even the flood’s fury dissolved into panic. “Brother He—” she shouted across the distance, “Have—have you seen Yun Shen?!”